There is an air of failure in Brussels. Yesterday night the president of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, presented a new compromise draft on the multiannual budget 2014-2020 to the heads of state and government of the EU. The text tries to reconcile the positions expressed by the different leaders during the bilateral meetings that preceded the summit.
The Council will resume at noon, but the prevailing impression among delegations is that the negotiations will not end today. In these hours the representatives of the various countries are examining the new proposals.
THE CUTS IN VAN ROMPUY'S DRAFT
The latest draft greatly reduces budget cuts in cohesion policy and the common agricultural policy, but affects other items more deeply, in particular competitiveness (research and development, infrastructure networks).
The cut for cohesion would be 18,5 billion (instead of the 29,5 billion proposed in the first compromise draft), while the reduction for the CAP would be 7,8 billion (from the original 25,5). The overall expenditure ceiling for the multiannual budget would in any case remain fixed at 973 billion euros, 1,01% of the gross national product of the EU as a whole, as in the first Van Rompuy proposal. This is because cuts in other items of the Community budget would be increased. 13 billion reductions foreseen in the 'Competitiveness' chapter (to be added to the 11,6 billion already proposed in the first draft, total: -24,6 billion): these are the research and technological development programmes, the Galileo program and the 'Connecting Europe Facility'.
Van Rompuy also suggests a reduction of a further 5,5 billion for funding for external action, which had already suffered a cut of 6,8 billion in his first proposal (total: -12,3 billion), and another 1,6, 500 billion for justice and security initiatives, on which he had already asked for cuts of 2,1 million euros (total -XNUMX billion).
The Van Rompuy draft, on the other hand, does not affect the administrative expenses of the European institutions, and in particular the salaries of officials. He only proposes to increase working hours from 37,5 hours to 40 hours per week, without increasing wages.
MERKEL, HOLLANDE AND MONTI PESSIMISTS ON THE POSSIBILITY OF A SHORT AGREEMENT
“I think we can go a little further, but I doubt we will reach an agreement” during this summit, said the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, at the end of the first session last night. French President François Hollande confirmed: "It is probable that there will be no agreement at this summit".
Since the beginning of the summit yesterday evening, the leaders of Austria, Spain and Poland, together with the Italian premier Mario Monti, had also raised the possibility that at least one more meeting would be needed to close the deal. In particular, the Professor said that “it wouldn't be a tragedy not to succeed: this is a very complex negotiation, which takes place every seven years, and I think it wouldn't be the first time that it hasn't been closed on the first attempt. It is a decision that must be taken unanimously, therefore all countries must agree”.
GOODBYE TO THE FRANCO-GERMAN AXIS: LONDON SUPPORTS BERLIN
So far the most dissatisfied appears to be the British premier David Cameron, who absolutely must bring home the untouchability of the British "discount" and a substantial cut in the EU budget to be fed to the Eurosceptics of his party.
The president of the European Parliament, Martin Schulz, is also in Brussels, taking part in the negotiations because after the Treaty of Lisbon the approval of the Strasbourg Assembly is also required for the multiannual financial framework, not just for the annual budget. The European Parliament – unfortunately for Cameron – is against any further cut compared to the European Commission's proposal.
The real novelty compared to similar summits of past years is the lack of agreement between Paris and Berlin. The Franco-German axis, which with the Merkozy duo had caused discontent and intolerance among the European partners, was totally non-existent last night, with Germany insisting on 30 billion new budget cuts (supported by London), and Paris determined to defend the funds for the Common Agricultural Policy to the end.
